Jarvis always considered descending the steps and the ride to his workplace as his workout.
The building itself had four floors and he lived at the very top floor. Always, he had to descend many flights of stairs before he got down and out the building.
Jarvis owned a bike which was bright red, same as his work clothes.
It was hidden underneath the last flight of stairs he had descended. He pushed it out slowly by the handlebars and exited the apartment complex.
The whole world was a dull grey.
All throughout the year in New Prosperity, the sun almost never shined. Jarvis knew this because his delivery job had him going all around the city.
The days were bleak and dreary, as if nature itself was frowning down on those in the city.
Well, the pollution played a huge part in the weather condition too.
New Prosperity was set up to be a financial city of sorts, to make new money, hence the name. A lot of factories were built here.
Even Valoran Industries, where his father once worked, had a factory here.
With the allure of jobs and money, a lot of people had flocked to the city in hopes of new life and making a living.
All that quickly crumbled apart when the robots started taking over the jobs.
Prioritizing efficiency, many factory owners preferred machines to men despite the cost. Normal people couldn't work as long and hard as machines with a small margin of error.
A lot of people were fired and with nowhere to go, they settled in the city, trying to find a way to make something out of the shattered pieces of their lives.
Fast forward to this present time, nothing had changed; and now the situation was even worse.
As Jarvis pedaled his red bike through the dirty streets, his workbag slung over his shoulder, all he could see was hunger and pain.
Lost people who didn't know what they were going to do with their lives.
Just like him.
Gaunt malnourished faces in dirty rags slept by the streets and in the alleys. A couple of drunkards stumbled out of a nearby bar, the only sober friend helping them to their homes.
He turned a corner and spotted a couple of delinquents smoking by a wall.
Their glazed, hungry gazes focused on him, or more exactly his bike. Jarvis sped up to prevent them from acting on their inner demons.
After a couple of twists and turns, he arrived in front of a large, building.
It had been painted red a couple of years ago but now time and weather had eroded it, making it look more pink than red.
The red and white sign which screamed BOOSEY'S had the last S tilting haphazardly.
He pushed his bike inside and chained it along with the other bikes in the rack by the wall. A couple of waitresses were cleaning the various tables and chairs in the eatery.
They wore the same uniform as him, red T-shirts and caps. Some wore jeans and others wore a dark skirt.
There was a mother and her little girl in a corner of the eatery.
The little girl had a steaming bowl of noodles, the cheapest on the menu, in front of her, devouring it with gusto.
Her mother watched with a light smile on her face despite the obvious hunger in her eyes.
Her stomach let out a growl of protest, causing the girl to look up. 'Mommy, are you still hungry? Eat some!'
She pushed the bowl of noodles forward but her mom returned it firmly.
'No darling, I'm alright. Eat for me.'
The girl shook her head and stubbornly insisted, 'Mommy, if you don't eat with me, I won't eat!'
Helplessly, the mother could only come to an agreement and took a mouthful of noodles. A blissful expression lit up her face and she stared at the food with longing but she shook her head.
'That's enough dear. Eat the rest.'
The little girl gave a dazzling smile and continued to slurp the noodles.
Jarvis shook his head and looked away. The mother was probably a hooker who was using the money earned from selling her body to feed her daughter.
Her skin still bore marks of abuse from the previous night.
'Hey Jarvis. What's up?'
One of the waitresses walked up to him, a smile on her face. This was Lisa, one of the few people he could call friends.
She was rather pretty too.
She had dark brown hair and her ponytail stuck out from the rear opening of her red cap. Her red uniform was faded from too much washing but it didn't fail to show she had a large bust.
Her brown eyes twinkled with good humor as she lightly punched his shoulder.
Jarvis smiled back. 'Nothing much.'
Lisa let out an exaggerated gasp as she stared at him incredulously. He tilted his head in confusion, wondering why.
'It's your birthday, you idiot!'
Jarvis was stunned for a couple of seconds. Someone had remembered? That was… surprising. Mostly, the employees at Boosey's were very wary of each other.
It was rather competitive as the boss, Mr. Boosey, had this habit of firing people.
No one wanted to lose their jobs so friendships were kept to the bare minimum. Take that waitress with the dark hair by that window for instance.
There were rumors about her that she set up her friend, who formerly worked here, to be fired so she could take her job.
So even with Lisa, Jarvis was rather careful.
Sometimes she was friendly, at other times she would totally ignore him as if he didn't exist. But she was one of the few who talked to him.
'Happy birthday!'
Jarvis nodded gratefully. 'Thanks, Lisa.'
Her smile grew even wider and she pinched his cheeks, causing him to wince inwardly. 'I'll get you something after my morning shift.'
Ignoring his agape astonishment, Lisa walked away.
Now that was shocking.
Was his luck working out for the better? He couldn't help but recall what had happened earlier. Was his fate truly changed?
Jarvis didn't know but he truly hoped so.
'Jarvis! Come here quick.' The bald profile of Mr. Boosey popped out from behind the door of his office.
Jarvis hurried forward, and entered his office and there, Mr. Boosey had returned to his worn out leather seat of power, behind his brown desk.
Unlike the wide diner which had over a dozen chairs and tables, his office was very small. A cash register sat on his desk, right beside a huge accounts book.
A framed picture of him hung above on the wall.
'Sit down, Jarvis. We have to talk.'
His moustache bristled as he cleaned his glasses and wore them on his large nose. Jarvis could vaguely see his hairy chest from the open buttons of his crumpled brown shirt.
Jarvis took a seat and waited patiently for Mr. Boosey to speak.
His moustache quivered as he stared at him. Then he looked down and sighed. 'I'm really sorry about this Jarvis, but I have to let you go.'
Jarvis blinked twice, not believing he heard his boss right.
What did he just say?
'What do you mean, Mr. Boosey?'
'You're fired, Jarvis.'